Ministry of Power Launches National E-Mobility Programme in India

EESL concluded the first tender for procuring 10,000 e-vehicles last year. Following the successful completion of the first tender, EESL envisions a growing demand from various government departments.ETAuto | March 07, 2018, 17:46 IST

New Delhi: Minister of Power, New and Renewable Energy, R K Singh today launched the National E-Mobility Programme in India. In line with the Government of India’s vision of 100% e-mobility by 2030, Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) will issue a fresh tender for additional 10,000 e-vehicles, the Minister announced, according to a media statement.

EESL concluded the first tender for procuring 10,000 e-vehicles last year. Following the successful completion of the first tender, EESL envisions a growing demand from various government departments.

The new tender for 10,000 e-vehicles will cater to this growing demand. With these 20,000 electric cars, India is expected to save over 5 crore litres of fuel every year leading to a reduction of over 5.6 lakh tonnes of annual CO2 emission.

R K Singh, Minister of State for Power, New and Renewable Energy, said, “India has embarked on an ambitious e-mobility plan and the government has taken the leadership in enabling e-mobility in India. The National E-Mobility Programme is a step towards ushering in an era of clean, green and future-oriented technologies in the country.”

“After the successful tender of 10,000 electric cars last year, the demand for e-vehicles is constantly rising across various departments of the Union and State Governments. To cater to the growing demand, EESL will issue a fresh tender tomorrow for procuring additional 10,000 electric cars. This second tender is a testimony to the fact that India offers a huge market potential for e-mobility” he added.

Ajay Kumar Bhalla, Secretary, Ministry of Power, said, “E-mobility is a critical aspect of overall achievement of Energy Efficiency and the Government of India is committed towards it. The launch today is a step towards reducing our carbon footprint and promise towards a more sustainable, greener, cleaner future. Adoption of EVs has given India an opportunity to bring together a holistic plan which marries “Make in India” Initiative to promote indigenous production of e- vehicles and create a booming market for ancillary industries.”

“EESL has always been at the forefront of India’s energy efficiency and green initiatives. We are committed to transform the Indian market with innovative business models and advanced technologies. We are confident that we will replicate the success of our previous path-breaking initiatives in our e-mobility programme. We will continue to enable more energy and fuel savings by creating a robust market for e-mobility in India,” Rajeev Sharma, Chairman, EESL said.

The objective of the National E-Mobility Programme is to provide an impetus to the entire e-mobility ecosystem including vehicle manufacturers, charging infrastructure companies, fleet operators, service providers.

EESL will aggregate demand by procuring electric vehicles in bulk to get economies of scale. These electric vehicles will replace the existing fleet of petrol and diesel vehicles.

EESL plans to leverage efficiencies of scale and drive down costs through its innovative business model while supporting local manufacturing facilities, gaining technical competencies for the long-term growth of the EV industry and enabling Indian EV manufacturers to emerge as major global players.

“Under the Government of India’s Street Light National Programme (SLNP), EESL has replaced 50 lakh conventional street lights across the country with energy-efficient LED lights. This is the largest installation anywhere in the world illuminating around 84 thousand kilometers of roads, with no upfront investment required from municipal bodies. The newly installed lights have led to brighter streets, feeling of enhanced safety and security among the residents and motorists. This has led to energy saving of 135 crore kWh and cost saving of INR 742 crores every year,” remarked Singh.

The procurement price of the LED Street Lights has been reduced from Rs. 135/watt to Rs. 70/watt due to mass procurement of the lights by EESL, hence making the LED lights affordable and accessible. EESL makes the entire upfront investment in retrofitting of the Street Lights and up to 10% of Infrastructure development charges and then Municipalities pay EESL from the savings in energy and maintenance cost over a 7-year period.

EESL procurements conform to BIS specification and carry a 7-year warranty against technical defects. EESL conducts appropriate quality checks right from the bidding stage to the field level. This has resulted in the LEDs’ overall technical fault being less than 2% in the 50 lakh lights installed by EESL in the country. EESL has maintained an uptime of 97% for all street lights across the country.

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